EPA ECHO Environmental Compliance Search

What does EPA ECHO Environmental Compliance Search do?

EPA ECHO Environmental Compliance Search is an Apify actor that queries the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) database for facility-level environmental compliance data. ECHO aggregates regulatory information from multiple EPA programs -- Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act (CWA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), Greenhouse Gas Reporting (GHG), and Risk Management Plan (RMP) -- into a single searchable interface covering hundreds of thousands of regulated facilities nationwide.

This actor automates the process of searching ECHO for facilities matching your criteria, extracting compliance status, inspection history, enforcement actions, penalty amounts, and environmental justice indicators. It handles the EPA's two-step query pattern (search, then paginate by query ID), rate limiting, and optional deep-dive Detailed Facility Reports (DFR) that provide permit-level, violation-level, and inspection-level records for each facility.

Whether you are an environmental consultant screening facilities for compliance risk, a journalist investigating pollution violators, an ESG analyst building corporate environmental profiles, a community activist tracking local polluters, or a compliance officer monitoring your own facilities, this actor delivers structured, machine-readable EPA enforcement data without the complexity of navigating the ECHO website or constructing raw API queries.

No API key is required. All data comes from the public EPA ECHO REST API at echodata.epa.gov and is freely available as U.S. government public information.

Features

• Search by facility name, state, city, ZIP code, county, or EPA region
• Filter by NAICS or SIC industry classification codes (prefix matching)
• Filter by environmental program (CAA, CWA, RCRA, SDWA, TRI, GHG, RMP)
• Filter by compliance status: any noncompliance, significant noncompliance in one or more programs
• Filter by penalty history: any penalty, never penalized, penalty within or over 12/24 months
• Filter by major or minor facility designation
• Filter for federal government facilities only
• Filter by formal enforcement actions in the last 5 years
• Filter by inspection history: inspected within X years, not inspected within X years, or never inspected
• Optional Detailed Facility Report (DFR) with permits, formal actions, inspections, and violations per facility
• Up to 10,000 facility records per run
• Automatic pagination through the EPA ECHO two-step query pattern
• Built-in retry logic with exponential backoff for rate limiting
• No API key or authentication required
• Summary statistics logged after each run (state distribution, program breakdown, penalty totals)

How to use

1. Configure your search -- Set your filters using any combination of location, industry, program, compliance status, and enforcement history parameters. At minimum, provide a state, facility name, or industry code to focus your search. If you run with no inputs, the actor defaults to facilities with significant noncompliance nationwide.

2. Run the actor -- Click "Start" to execute your search. The actor queries the EPA ECHO API, paginates through all matching results, optionally fetches Detailed Facility Reports, and pushes clean data to the output dataset.

3. Enable detailed reports (optional) -- Set includeDetailedReport to true to fetch permit, enforcement, inspection, and violation details for each facility. This makes one additional API call per facility and is best used with smaller result sets (under 500).

4. Schedule recurring runs -- Use Apify's scheduler to run the actor daily or weekly for ongoing compliance monitoring. Pair with Slack, email, or webhook integrations for automated alerts when new violators appear.

5. Export or integrate -- Download results as JSON, CSV, or Excel from the Dataset tab. Or use the Apify API, webhooks, Google Sheets, Slack, or Zapier integrations for automated workflows.

Input parameters

Input examples

Significant violators in Texas:

{
    "state": "TX",
    "complianceStatus": "3",
    "maxResults": 200
}

Petroleum refineries with Clean Air Act violations:

{
    "naicsCode": "324",
    "program": "A",
    "complianceStatus": "2",
    "maxResults": 500
}

Facilities never inspected in California waste management industry:

{
    "state": "CA",
    "naicsCode": "562",
    "inspectionFilter": "NV",
    "maxResults": 300
}

Federal facilities with formal enforcement and detailed reports:

{
    "federalFacility": true,
    "formalEnforcement": true,
    "includeDetailedReport": true,
    "maxResults": 50
}

Major facilities penalized within 12 months in EPA Region 05 (Great Lakes):

{
    "epaRegion": "05",
    "majorFacility": "Y",
    "penaltyFilter": "LE12",
    "includeDetailedReport": true,
    "maxResults": 100
}

Search by facility name with detailed report:

{
    "facilityName": "DOW CHEMICAL",
    "includeDetailedReport": true,
    "maxResults": 50
}

Input tips

• Combine state with industry code for targeted regional analysis. Using industry code alone may return thousands of results across all states.
• NAICS prefix matching means "32" matches all manufacturing codes (32xxxx). Use 3-4 digit codes for specific subsectors.
• Default behavior with no input returns 100 facilities with significant noncompliance in at least one program nationwide. This is a useful starting point for exploring the data.
• Enable includeDetailedReport selectively -- Each DFR adds an extra API call, so keep maxResults under 500 when using this option to avoid long run times.
• Use complianceStatus: "4" to find the worst offenders -- facilities with significant noncompliance in two or more programs simultaneously.
• Inspection filter NV (Never Inspected) reveals facilities that have never received a compliance inspection, which can indicate oversight gaps.
• Penalty filter NEVER identifies facilities that have never been financially penalized, even if they have violations on record.

Output format

Each facility in the output dataset contains the following fields:

{
    "registryId": "110070350174",
    "facilityName": "MARATHON PETROLEUM COMPANY LP - GALVESTON BAY REFINERY",
    "street": "2401 5TH AVE S",
    "city": "TEXAS CITY",
    "state": "TX",
    "zipCode": "77590",
    "county": "GALVESTON",
    "latitude": 29.3847,
    "longitude": -94.9125,
    "epaRegion": "06",
    "fipsCode": "48167",
    "sicCodes": "2911",
    "naicsCodes": "324110",
    "programs": ["CAA", "CWA", "RCRA", "TRI"],
    "majorFacility": true,
    "activeFacility": true,
    "complianceStatus": "Significant Noncompliance",
    "significantNoncompliance": true,
    "quartersInNoncompliance": 8,
    "caaComplianceStatus": "High Priority Violation",
    "cwaComplianceStatus": "Significant Noncompliance",
    "rcraComplianceStatus": "In Compliance",
    "sdwaComplianceStatus": "",
    "inspectionCount": 14,
    "lastInspectionDate": "09/15/2025",
    "lastFormalActionDate": "03/22/2025",
    "lastPenaltyDate": "03/22/2025",
    "totalPenalties": 387500,
    "penaltyCount": 3,
    "formalActionCount": 5,
    "caa3yrHistory": "VVVVVVVVNNNN",
    "cwa3yrHistory": "VVNNNNNNNNNN",
    "rcra3yrHistory": "NNNNNNNNNNNN",
    "triReleasesTransfers": "4,523,100",
    "percentMinority": 42.3,
    "populationDensity": 1847.5,
    "detailedReport": {
        "permits": [
            {
                "SourceID": "TX0001234",
                "ProgramAcronym": "CWA",
                "PermitName": "TPDES PERMIT",
                "ExpirationDate": "09/30/2027",
                "Status": "Effective"
            }
        ],
        "formalActions": [
            {
                "StatuteAcronym": "CAA",
                "ActionType": "Formal Enforcement Action",
                "ActionDate": "03/22/2025",
                "Penalty": "$250,000",
                "LeadAgency": "EPA"
            }
        ],
        "inspections": [
            {
                "StatuteAcronym": "CAA",
                "InspectionType": "Compliance Evaluation Inspection",
                "ComplianceMonitoringActivityDate": "09/15/2025",
                "FindingSummary": "Violation Identified",
                "LeadAgency": "State"
            }
        ],
        "violations": [
            {
                "StatuteAcronym": "CWA",
                "ViolationType": "Effluent",
                "Pollutant": "Total Suspended Solids",
                "ComplianceScheduleDate": "01/31/2025",
                "ActualDate": "03/15/2025",
                "Agency": "State"
            }
        ]
    },
    "echoUrl": "https://echo.epa.gov/detailed-facility-report?fid=110070350174",
    "extractedAt": "2026-02-25T14:30:00.000Z"
}

Output fields reference

Detailed Report fields

When includeDetailedReport is enabled, each facility includes a detailedReport object containing:

Example use cases

Environmental compliance auditing -- A compliance officer at a manufacturing company runs monthly searches for their facilities by name to verify that all sites remain in compliance. They enable detailed reports to review permit status and flag upcoming expirations. Noncompliance findings are routed to site managers for corrective action.

Investigative environmental journalism -- A reporter searches for facilities with significant noncompliance in two or more programs (complianceStatus: "4") in a specific state, focusing on facilities with large penalties. They cross-reference TRI release data with nearby population demographics using the percentMinority and populationDensity fields to investigate environmental justice concerns.

ESG and corporate sustainability analysis -- An ESG analyst searches for all facilities associated with a publicly traded company by name, then aggregates compliance status, penalty totals, and TRI releases across all sites to build an environmental performance score. They track this monthly using scheduled runs and compare against industry peers.

Environmental due diligence for M&A -- A private equity firm evaluating a potential acquisition searches for all facilities owned by the target company. They enable detailed reports to review enforcement actions, outstanding violations, and permit compliance to assess environmental liabilities before closing the deal.

Community environmental monitoring -- A neighborhood advocacy group searches by ZIP code or county to identify all regulated facilities in their area. They use the penalty history and compliance status filters to find chronic violators and present findings at public hearings. Environmental justice indicators help quantify the disproportionate impact on minority communities.

Regulatory gap analysis -- A policy researcher searches for facilities that have never been inspected (inspectionFilter: "NV") in a specific industry and region to identify potential regulatory blind spots. They combine this with major facility filtering to find high-risk sites that may warrant increased oversight.

Insurance environmental risk underwriting -- An insurance underwriter searches by NAICS code and state to assess the environmental compliance profile of a prospective policyholder's industry and geography. Facilities with recent penalties or formal enforcement actions indicate higher environmental liability risk.

Supply chain environmental screening -- A procurement team searches for key suppliers by facility name to screen for environmental violations. Suppliers with significant noncompliance or recurring penalties are flagged for additional review or corrective action requirements in vendor agreements.

Environmental programs reference

Compliance status codes reference

The EPA uses several compliance status levels that appear in the output data:

3-Year Compliance History codes

The caa3yrHistory, cwa3yrHistory, and rcra3yrHistory fields contain 12-character strings representing quarterly compliance over the past 3 years (newest quarter first):

Example: "VVVVNNNNNNNN" means the facility had violations in the most recent 4 quarters but was compliant in the 8 quarters before that.

EPA regions reference

Limitations and data freshness

• No API key required -- This actor queries public EPA data and does not require any authentication or API key.
• 10,000 facility cap per run -- The actor limits output to 10,000 facilities per execution. For larger datasets, run multiple times with different state or region filters.
• EPA API pagination limit -- The EPA ECHO API allows up to 70,000 results per query with a maximum of 1,000 per page. The actor handles pagination automatically.
• Rate limiting -- The EPA API may return HTTP 429 responses under heavy load. The actor includes automatic retry logic with exponential backoff (up to 3 retries per request).
• Data freshness -- ECHO data is updated regularly but not in real time. Inspection data may lag by days or weeks. Enforcement actions and penalties may take months to appear after case resolution. TRI data is reported annually.
• Detailed reports add latency -- Enabling includeDetailedReport adds one API call per facility. For 500 facilities, expect the run to take several minutes due to request pacing.
• Facility name matching is partial -- The facilityName parameter uses CONTAINS matching, so "DOW" will match "DOW CHEMICAL", "DOWDUPONT", "MEADOWBROOK", etc. Be specific to avoid unwanted matches.
• NAICS/SIC prefix matching -- Short code prefixes (2 digits) match broadly across an entire industry sector. Use 3-6 digit codes for more precise targeting.
• Environmental justice data -- The percentMinority and populationDensity fields are derived from census block group data and may not reflect current demographics exactly.
• State data variation -- States with delegated authority to administer federal environmental programs may have different data completeness and timeliness compared to facilities directly overseen by EPA regional offices.

Responsible use

• Public data -- All information returned by this actor is published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as public record. ECHO data is explicitly intended for public access and transparency.
• Compliance status is not a final judgment -- Facilities may be in the process of resolving violations, contesting enforcement actions, or negotiating consent agreements. Present data with appropriate context.
• Fair interpretation of penalties -- Penalty amounts reflect EPA or state assessments and may be adjusted through settlement or appeal. Do not present initial penalty amounts as final unless confirmed by the enforcement action record.
• Environmental justice context -- When using demographic data (percent minority, population density) in analysis, provide appropriate context and avoid drawing causal conclusions from correlations alone.
• No harassment -- Do not use facility or compliance data to harass, threaten, or intimidate facility operators, employees, or nearby residents.
• Attribution -- When publishing EPA ECHO data, attribute it to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ECHO program.
• Respect rate limits -- The actor includes built-in request pacing and retry logic. Do not modify the actor to bypass rate limits or flood the EPA API with excessive requests.

Integrations and API access

Python

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_API_TOKEN")

run = client.actor("ryanclinton/epa-echo-search").call(run_input={
    "state": "TX",
    "naicsCode": "324",
    "complianceStatus": "3",
    "includeDetailedReport": True,
    "maxResults": 100,
})

for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    programs = ", ".join(item.get("programs", []))
    print(f"{item['facilityName']} — {item['city']}, {item['state']}")
    print(f"  Programs: {programs}")
    print(f"  Compliance: {item['complianceStatus']} | SNC: {item['significantNoncompliance']}")
    print(f"  Penalties: ${item['totalPenalties']:,.0f} | Inspections: {item['inspectionCount']}")
    if item.get("detailedReport"):
        dfr = item["detailedReport"]
        print(f"  Permits: {len(dfr['permits'])} | Violations: {len(dfr['violations'])}")

JavaScript

import { ApifyClient } from "apify-client";

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: "YOUR_APIFY_API_TOKEN" });

const run = await client.actor("ryanclinton/epa-echo-search").call({
    state: "TX",
    naicsCode: "324",
    complianceStatus: "3",
    includeDetailedReport: true,
    maxResults: 100,
});

const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    const programs = (item.programs || []).join(", ");
    console.log(`${item.facilityName} — ${item.city}, ${item.state}`);
    console.log(`  Programs: ${programs}`);
    console.log(`  Compliance: ${item.complianceStatus} | SNC: ${item.significantNoncompliance}`);
    console.log(`  Penalties: $${item.totalPenalties} | Inspections: ${item.inspectionCount}`);
    if (item.detailedReport) {
        console.log(`  Permits: ${item.detailedReport.permits.length} | Violations: ${item.detailedReport.violations.length}`);
    }
});

cURL

# Start the actor
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/ryanclinton~epa-echo-search/runs?token=YOUR_APIFY_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "state": "TX",
    "naicsCode": "324",
    "complianceStatus": "3",
    "maxResults": 100
  }'

# Retrieve results (use the defaultDatasetId from the run response)
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/DATASET_ID/items?token=YOUR_APIFY_API_TOKEN&format=json"

Apify integrations

EPA ECHO Environmental Compliance Search works with all Apify platform integrations:

• Google Sheets -- Automatically export facility compliance data to a spreadsheet for team review and filtering.
• Slack / Email -- Get instant notifications when new violations or enforcement actions match your monitoring criteria.
• Webhooks -- Push results to your compliance management system, risk platform, or custom data pipeline.
• Zapier / Make -- Connect to thousands of apps for custom automation workflows.
• API access -- Retrieve results programmatically via the Apify API in JSON, CSV, Excel, XML, or RSS formats.

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